Troy University Athletics
Trojans Fall At Home To FIU
2/14/2010 1:00:00 AM | Basketball (W)
TROY, Ala. - Donette McNair recorded her ninth double-double of the season and the 14th of her career, but it wasn't enough as the Troy University women's basketball team dropped their fifth consecutive game.
The Trojans led twice in the game, but a second half run by the FIU Golden Panthers extended the losing streak as they were able to pull away for a 55-47 Sun Belt Conference victory at Trojan Arena Saturday night.
McNair scored a game-high 17 points and grabbed a game-high 13 rebounds, averaging a double-double over the last three weeks for the Trojans. She connected on 6-of-13 shots from the floor and 5-of-9 shots from the free throw line in the contest. Freshman Sophie Kleeman was the only other player in double figures for the Trojans, as she added 11 points, on three 3-pointers in the loss.
"I am disappointed in the loss but I am grateful for the kids' effort," Troy head coach Michael Murphy said. "We are just trying a little bit too hard, and I think we forced some things down the stretch and made some bad shots because we are just trying too hard.
"We have to give credit to FIU, this is a team that we had beaten three straight times and they were looking for a big win, and they got it."
Troy (11-13, 4-10 Sun Belt) shot 29.5 (18-of-61) percent from the floor and 25 (4-of-16) percent from beyond the arc, while shooting 58.3 (7-of-12) percent from the charity stripe. The Trojans won the rebounding battle 40-35, and forced 14 FIU turnovers.
"You shoot 29 percent at home and really shouldn't win," Murphy said. "If you look at the score, it was close throughout and we did other things to give ourselves a chance to win the game. We did a good job of rebounding the ball offensively and giving ourselves a chance to get easy shots and stay in the game.
"I thought we did a good job of getting off decent shots and spreading the floor. We just didn't get enough offensive output to give ourselves a chance to win the basketball game. Our two seniors went a combined 5-for-25 from the floor, and it is awfully hard to win a basketball game when you don't score. It forces you to have to play perfect on the defensive end, which is hard to do if not impossible."
Meanwhile, FIU was led by Michelle Gonzalez with 16 points, while Rakia Rodgers came off the bench to score 14 points - including a self-made 12-0 run in the first half to help FIU pull away. Elisa Carey added 13 points and nine rebounds for FIU (13-13, 8-7 Sun Belt).
The Golden Panthers shot 45.5 (20-of-44) percent from the floor and just 25 (3-of-12) - becoming the 11th opponent of the Trojans to be held to 25 percent or less shooting from beyond the arc this season. The Golden Panthers also shot 70.6 (12-of-17) percent from the free throw line, with Carey and Gonzalez combining to shot 8-of-10 from the charity stripe.
After Troy tied the game at 10-all just 7:30 minutes in the game, Rodgers made her presence known over the next four minutes. The sophomore did not play in the first meeting between the two schools, but managed to come off the bench and score 12 consecutive points to push the Golden Panthers ahead to a 22-10 lead with 7:26 remaining in the first half.
Rodgers connected on two jumpers, a lay-up, a pair of 3-pointers and a pair of free throws in the run for the Golden Panthers.
Troy answered with a mini 6-0 run to trim the lead to 22-16 late in the first half. Brittnie Davis started the run with a 15-foot jumper in the right corner, before Kirsten Smith hit a baseline eight-footer and Kleeman a pull-up jumper over the three minute span.
The Trojans trimmed the lead to as close as three at the beginning of the second half, using a 17-8 run that was keyed by the six-point outburst.
Trailing by eight with 29.1 seconds left in the half, the Trojans used a steal and fast break layup by Davis to trim the deficit to 30-24 with just 5.5 seconds left in the half. FIU was unable to get a shot off before the end of the half, and the Trojans were able to trim the deficit to three at 30-27 when Alyce Shearing hit a 3-pointer with 18:25 to play in the game.
After Troy trimmed the lead to 34-33, the Golden Panthers pushed the lead to as many as seven at 48-41 with 3:05 to play in the contest. The Trojans were able to pull within four on two different occasions late in the contest, but free throws by FIU sealed the Golden Panther victory.
The Trojans return to action Wednesday night in their WBCA Pink Zone initiative contest against Middle Tennessee. Fans are urged to wear pink and bring donations to the door to help find a cure for breast cancer. For more information on the WBCA Pink Zone initiative, contact the Troy University Athletics Department at (334) 670-3834.
Tickets are on sale for the Sun Belt Conference Tournament, which takes place the first week of March, at the Troy University Ticket Office. Call 1-877-878-WINS (9467) and follow the Trojans to Hot Springs, Arkansas. Make sure to purchase your tickets through Troy and sit behind the team bench at Summit Arena.
